Madison County Board opts not to replace emergency management director days after tornado
The Madison County Board shot down Chairman Kurt Prenzler’s attempt to appoint a new director of the Emergency Management Agency at its regular board meeting Wednesday night.
Prenzler wanted to replace current Director Tony Falconio with Richard Keasey, which was not well-received among Madison County Board Members, even among those who commended Keasey.
“[Keasey] is a fantastic human being, a great American, and a real American patriot,” said Mick Madison, a Republican from Bethalto. “He’s a highly decorated Air Force Colonel. He would be splendid at this position, but I have to vote no on this replacement.”
The attempted appointment comes in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic and just days after a devastating tornado struck an Amazon facility in Edwardsville, killing six people Friday night.
“You saw (Falconio’s) performance over the weekend,” said Eric Foster, a Republican from Granite City, to Prenzler. “He performed flawlessly. Why do you continually put this board in this situation, and why do you continually try to get rid of people the board advises you to leave alone?”
Prenzler did not give a reason for wanting to replace Falconio.
“It’s not appropriate to talk about a person who’s not up for appointment,” Prenzler said. “It’s only appropriate to talk about the person who’s being appointed.”
No board members questioned Keasey’s qualifications; other than Madison, no one made any comments about Keasey at all. Rather, the discussion was focused on retaining Falconio.
Michael “Doc” Holliday, a Democrat from Alton, said the sheriff’s office and the police departments he spoke to told him how dedicated Falconio was.
Keasey’s appointment failed for a lack of motion, which prompted some of the people sitting in the meeting room in Edwardsville to applaud.
Falconio sat in on the meeting. After the county board adjourned, some board members shook his hand in the hall outside of the meeting room. He told the Belleville News-Democrat he had no comment.
The resolution in the board’s packets indicated that, if approved, Keasey would be paid a yearly salary of $91,249.60, which is the same as Falconio’s salary, according to the Belleville News-Democrat Public Pay Database.
Falconio has been director since 2019, according to his LinkedIn page. He was previously the emergency management director for Clinton County.
Last year, Keasey ran for Madison County Board District 18 as a Republican. He lost to longtime Democratic incumbent Jack Minner, even as his party would go on to win 12 of the 14 contested seats.
According to his campaign website, Keasey served in the Air Force and Illinois Air National Guard for 30 years before he retired in 2015.